“Trump’s right. His economy is a win for Wall Street. Meanwhile, while the rich get richer, millions of Americans cannot afford the basic necessities of life.”
US President Donald Trump shakes hands with Apple CEO Tim Cook during a meeting in the Oval Office on August 6, 2025.
(Photo by Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
Jake Johnson
Aug 15, 2026
COMMON DREAMS
President Donald Trump on Friday said that the US economy is “doing unbelievably from the standpoint of Wall Street,” bragging about record equity prices as job and wage growth remain stagnant and millions of Americans struggle to afford groceries.
In remarks to reporters, Trump hailed what he described as “the best market in history” as the S&P 500 index notched its third consecutive week of gains and hovered near its all-time high. The president, a prolific trader who has personally profited from the stock market’s performance, said surging equities are “good for 401(k)s”—retirement accounts that a growing share of Americans are tapping to cover emergency expenses amid a worsening cost-of-living crisis.
“Trump’s right. His economy is a win for Wall Street,” Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said in response to the president. “Meanwhile, while the rich get richer, millions of Americans cannot afford the basic necessities of life—food, housing, healthcare, and a decent retirement.”
The Alliance for Retired Americans, an advocacy group with more than 4 million members across the US, expressed astonishment at Trump’s rosy and narrow assessment of the economy, which the White House posted on its official YouTube page.
“Can’t make it up,” the group wrote on social media. “We don’t live on Wall Street. How is the economy working for you?”
Trump’s comments came the same day that new data showed US consumer sentiment has fallen in August after two consecutive months of improvement, with Americans’ outlook on the nation’s economic conditions worsening across the political spectrum.
Last week, the Labor Department published figures showing that the US economy shed 23,000 jobs in July, wage growth decelerated, and the unemployment rate fell slightly as more people left the workforce.
Despite Trump’s promise to bring them down, prices remain elevated across the economy, driven in part by the president’s illegal war against Iran. Research published last month by the Urban Institute found that American families are increasingly relying on savings and credit—including buy now, pay later programs—to meet their grocery needs.
Americans are also facing what The Century Foundation and Protect Borrowers describe as “a worsening utility debt crisis.”
“Energy bills have increased three times faster than the rate of inflation while Trump has been president,” the groups wrote in an analysis published last month. “The national average monthly utility bill reached $280 in early 2026, a 12% increase since the end of 2024, just before the second Trump administration took office.”
Meanwhile, corporate profits are booming under Trump, with the pharmaceutical industry, Big Oil, and other sectors posting banner earnings.
“Second quarter earnings for S&P 500 companies are on pace to rise 50% year over year, the highest growth rate since the second quarter of 2021,” Yahoo Finance reported.
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